Contents

Background

Since its discovery by John Smith in 1614, Boston Harbor has been an important port in American history. It was the site of the Boston Tea Party as well as almost continuous backfilling of the harbor until the 19th century. By 1660 almost all imports came to the New England coast through the waters of Boston Harbor. With the rapid influx of immigrants Boston transformed into a booming city, however with such a population increase comes sanitary issues. (Such as dumping their waste into the nearby waterways and eventually into the harbor; a common practice throughout history.) By the late 19th century people were advised not to swim in any portion of the Harbor. The City of Boston – like most major cities at the time – would go on to create sewage stations and commissions to deal with the problem. Eventually the water quality in both the Harbor and the Charles River improved, and the projects have dramatically transformed Boston Harbor from one of the filthiest in the nation to one of the cleanest. Becoming a safe for fishing and swimming,[1][2] however this wouldn't prove to last through the energy crisis.

With the loss of easily accessible resources the nation – and in particular the City of Boston – would go on to adopt a (policy/desperate measure) of nuclearization. A process by which as much was powered by nuclear reactors and possible. This however would lead to a separate problem, illegal dumping. A problem of all industries in their early days, improper hazardous waste disposal would go on to be catastrophic to – not only the environment – but also the natural evolutionary state of nature herself.

Corrupt to the core, the local municipal services of the Greater Boston area would routinely flout basic safety protocols and misallocate funds. Such as the case with the entire municipal water system. Despite a decade-long (c. 2050—2060) plan of modernizing the city's aged sanitation systems,[7] the new equipment procured and updated facilities was of poor quality and use. Such as the case of the Weston water treatment plant, with the catastrophic and systematic failures of the equipment the facility was forced to compensate both in man-hours and even "experimental" waste water recycling. This lead to a cholera outbreak in 2077; to cover for this, the facility staff and regional municipal utility services would collude with other plants to swap out tainted water for clean. AKA the "Weston WELLness press initiative."

This was all compounded by the still functional two hundred year old (at the time) sewage tunnels; built to channel waste water directly to the nearest waterway, they would occasional overflow with combined sewer and rain water. These were never modernized, nor reinforced. Much of these ancient catacombs were crushed by the Great War, what wasn't crushed would be either cut off from the rest of the system or silted up with the harbor itself.

Now, past the shallow waters and rusty hulks the harbor has the distinction of being among the most dangerous – and soggy – of neighborhoods of Boston. Home to Mirelurks, pockets of super mutants, raiders, and the odd roving scavenger, the inhabitants are never friendly. Since the war tales of a sea monster have circulated lurking in the bay.[8]

↑Fallout 4 Vault Dweller's Survival Guide Collector's Edition p.312: "[3.16] WESTON WATER TREATMENT PLANTThis plant was built in 2051 as part of a decade-long plan to modernize the city’s aging sanitation systems. In the decades after the bombs fell, the rising sea levels eventually overwhelmed the plant’s retaining wall and began to flood the facility. As the pumps lost power, shorted out, and began to fail, the water output fell and grew more contaminated."(Fallout 4 Vault Dweller's Survival Guide Map)

↑Fallout 4 Vault Dweller's Survival Guide Collector's Edition p.504-505: "Zone 17: Neighborhood: Boston Harbor (Waterfront)Just as the Charles River empties out into the Massachusetts Bay, so, too, did container vessels from across the Old World, about 400 years ago. Now the harbor is in serious need of dredging, with a variety of rusty hulks and rotting boats scattered about this waterway. Home to Mirelurks, pockets of Super Mutants and Raiders, and the odd roving Scavenger, Boston Harbor offers views out to the east, toward the airport. Head north to Charleston, west into the Theater District, and south toward Quincy and South Boston. Though there are few primary locations, this has the distinction of being among the most dangerous of neighborhoods, as the ground is sometimes soggy and the inhabitants never friendly. Also, did you hear tales of the sea monster lurking in the bay?"(Fallout 4 Vault Dweller's Survival Guide Map)

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